1. Field of Disclosed Subject Matter
This disclosure relates to systems and methods for implementing a closed loop processing and control scheme for providing automated control of mechanical components to effect removal of detected wrinkle conditions, while limiting differential nip pressure forces, in tensioned web continuous feed image receiving media in web-based printing devices, including post processing devices, for advanced image forming systems.
2. Related Art
Many modern, sometimes complex, image forming systems make use of continuous feed or web material image receiving media, which is fed from rolls or stacks as the image receiving media sources. FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of a general configuration of an image forming system 100 that employs continuous feed or web material image receiving media. A roll of web material image receiving media 110 is provided as an image receiving media source. Images are printed on the continuous feed or web material image receiving media in particular page layouts, for example, according to instructions from an image production source (not shown) by a media marking device 120.
Media marking devices, as those devices may be referenced throughout this disclosure, are not intended to be devices that are restricted to employment of any particular media marking materials, e.g., inks, toners and the like, or to any particular delivery mechanisms for those media marking materials, including but not limited to, xerographic image forming, inkjet delivery, laser marking, lithographic ink delivery or the like. Further, the media marking devices described in this disclosure may include initial image finishing components, e.g., fuser modules for fusing and/or fixing the delivered media marking materials on the surfaces of the image receiving media substrates by heat, pressure, or a combination of the two. It should be recognized, however, that the initial image finishing components may be separate, stand-alone devices or may be incorporated as portions of other media post-processing devices 130.
Downstream, in a process direction, of the media marking device 120 may be one or more media post-processing devices 130 for executing post-processing on the now-imaged continuous feed or web material image receiving media prior to forwarding a finished printed document to a media output receptacle 140 for recovery by a user. The post-processing carried out on the media by the post-processing devices 130 can involve one or more of myriad methodologies that are implemented for document finishing. The media post-processing devices 130 may employ technologies for fixing images on the surfaces of the continuous feed or web material image receiving media, or may separately provide, for example, cutting, collating, stacking, sorting, binding and/or stapling of imaged image receiving media substrates to form finished documents. The media post-processing devices 130 may, for example, cut individual pages from the continuous feed or web material image receiving media, and stack and collate those pages, and drill and bind those pages, as a finished output document.
Handling of continuous feed or web material image receiving media in complex image forming systems, such as those systems described generally above, requires particular attention once marking material has been deposited on the image receiving media and while the marked images undergo post-processing. Image durability issues may be addressed in post-processing and finishing devices in a number of ways including heat/pressure fusing and/or over coatings including waxes, oils, acrylics or other clear coatings, and many other techniques, objectives of which are to attempt to ensure that the marking material, e.g., ink or toner, does not offset in or onto downstream post-processing devices.
Continuous feed or web material image receiving media can generally be transported through a complex image forming system, and individual devices of that image forming system, by one of two transport mechanisms depending on particular characteristics of the operations undertaken by the individual devices, and particularly post-processing devices. In individual devices that may comprise the increasingly complex image forming systems, consideration must be taken on how to control the transport of the continuous feed or web material image receiving media as it passes through each of the particular devices that may be arranged in differing orders and in differing configurations to make up the image forming systems. The two generally-understood typical scenarios that exist with regard to driving the continuous feed or web material image receiving media are that: (1) the continuous feed or web material image receiving media may be pulled through the system by a downstream device, creating generally a tight or tensioned (or wrap) web through the system, or at least in individual devices in the system; and/or (2) the continuous feed or web material image receiving media may be generally slackened as it enters the downstream device, in which case, the continuous feed or web material image receiving media is driven by a pressure nip acting on the continuous feed or web material image receiving media in the downstream device. Regardless of the mechanism, in order to preserve image quality and not damage the continuous feed or web material image receiving media, there is a need to control all aspects, e.g. speed, of transport of the material through each of the devices and through the system overall so that the continuous feed or web material image receiving media does not bind between devices, and otherwise does not break as it is passed through the system and passed through the individual devices that comprise that system.